(CNN – Opinion by Robert Whaples) — If you’ve ever looked closely at a newly minted penny, you’ve probably been struck by its sheer beauty. Abraham Lincoln’s bearded, chiseled, copper face shines forth beneath the proclamation of “In God We Trust” and beside the quintessential American motto, “Liberty.” Americans revere the penny, as it encapsulates a history lesson — Lincoln brought …

Anna Marie Gutierrez, age 87, of Mendon, died Friday, Feb. 17, 2012, at her home, following a long illness. She was born March 26, 1924, in Toledo, Ohio, a daughter of Theodore E. and Agnes L. (Jones) Fess. On April 28, 1962, Anna married Marshall F. Gutierrez at their Portage Lake home, where she had resided the past 52 years. …

Warren J. Brandebury, 87, of LaGrange, Ind., and formerly of Sturgis, died Friday, Feb. 17, 2012, at Parkview LaGrange Hospital in LaGrange. Mr. Brandebury was born June 6, 1924, in Grand Rapids, to Arlee and Bertha (Stahr) Brandebury; they preceded him in death. In 1960, he moved to Sturgis, where he lived until two years ago, when he moved to …

The Gwinnett Gladiators avenged a loss six days earlier to the Kalamazoo Wings by coming-from-behind to defeat the K-Wings 4-3 Saturday night in a shootout. Following a pregame ceremony to celebrate life by recognizing 14 breast cancer survivors that put the largest home crowd (4,754) of the season on their feet, the K-Wings kept them cheering by striking three times …

Douglas Garrison, 94, of Kalamazoo and formerly of Bangor, passed away Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012 in Kalamazoo. Doug was born April 4, 1917 in Three Rivers, the son of Norman W. and Olive Marie Garrison. Douglas served in the US Army Air Corps as a gunnery instructor during WWII. He was a graduate of Alma College and held a master’s …

Surrendering a three-goal lead late in the third period, the Kalamazoo Wings stayed composed and fought back to defeat the Cincinnati Cyclones 5-4 in a shootout Friday. Dictating the tempo in the first period, Kalamazoo jumped ahead 6:38 into the period, when Darren Archibald skated around two defenders and sent a centering pass to Dustin Cloutier for his 7th goal …

Louis Kondas, 71, of Mendon Township, died Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012 at Kairos Dwelling in Kalamazoo. He was born in Czechoslovakia on Feb. 19, 1940 the son of Laszlo and Madga (Parajos) Kondas. He played soccer and was a bricklayer in his younger days. Louis came to the United States in 1969 with the assistance of the Mary Lagoni family, …

A rash of call-ups and injuries to the Kalamazoo Wings roster in December was no picnic for head coach Nick Bootland. For Dustin Cloutier, however, that is a different story. After starting the season with the Augusta Riverhawks of the SPHL, the forward was added to the K-Wings lineup on December 21, along with three other players, to help fill …

Vondalee A. Wallman, 72, of White Pigeon, died unexpectedly Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012, at her home.  She was born in Texas, and was a resident of the White Pigeon area for many years.  On Aug. 16, 1979, she married Charles D. Wallman in White Pigeon. he preceded her in death Feb. 12, 2004.  She had been employed by Coachman in Middlebury, Ind.  …

Stephanie Horvath, age 87, of Sturgis, passed away Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 14, 2012, at her home.  She was born July 15, 1924 in Delray.  Mrs. Horvath had resided in Sturgis for the past nine years, coming from Wyandotte, where she had lived most of her life.  For many years she worked as a crossing guard and she was a homemaker …